a Department of Social Work , Helen Bader School of Social Welfare , University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee , Milwaukee , Wisconsin, United States.
b Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work , University of Southern California , Los Angeles , California , United States.
Aging Ment Health. 2019 Jun;23(6):771-780. doi: 10.1080/13607863.2018.1450837. Epub 2018 Apr 10.
Maintaining cognitive function is an essential aspect of successful aging. Widowhood is a salient life transition that can affect older adults' cognitive function. Leisure engagement has received increasing attention because it is still modifiable in later life to help prevent cognitive decline. Nonetheless, limited longitudinal studies have examined how widowhood influences cognitive function, and even fewer studies have tested the role of leisure activities in this relationship.
This study delineated the mechanism of widowhood, leisure activity engagement, and cognitive function among older adults using a national longitudinal dataset, the Health and Retirement Study, and its supplementary dataset, the Consumption and Activities Mail Survey, which repeatedly measured individuals' leisure activity engagement.
Findings showed no significant association between widowhood and cognitive function during a 4-year period. However, engagement in mental activities moderated the impact of widowhood on cognitive function. Specifically, the benefit of mental activity engagement on cognition was more pronounced among individuals who were recently widowed compared to those who were married. This implies a protective role of mental activities in the relationship between widowhood and cognitive function.
Interventions with mentally stimulating activities at the community level to retain cognition among individuals in early phase widowhoodare suggested. Future studies are necessary to explore whether other factors such as changes in physical and mental health and intergenerational support from adult children during widowhood may further influence this mechanism among widowhood, leisure activities, and cognitive function.
保持认知功能是成功老龄化的一个重要方面。丧偶是一个显著的生活转折点，可能会影响老年人的认知功能。休闲活动受到越来越多的关注，因为它在晚年仍然可以改变，有助于预防认知能力下降。尽管如此，很少有纵向研究探讨丧偶如何影响认知功能，更少的研究测试休闲活动在这种关系中的作用。
本研究使用国家纵向数据集——健康与退休研究及其补充数据集——消费和活动邮件调查，详细描述了丧偶、休闲活动参与和老年人认知功能之间的关系。该调查反复测量个体的休闲活动参与度。
研究结果显示，在 4 年期间，丧偶与认知功能之间没有显著关联。然而，心理活动的参与度调节了丧偶对认知功能的影响。具体来说，与已婚者相比，最近丧偶者参与心理活动对认知的益处更为明显。这意味着心理活动在丧偶与认知功能之间的关系中起到了保护作用。
建议在社区层面开展有针对性的、具有刺激思维的活动，以保留处于早期丧偶阶段个体的认知能力。需要进一步研究其他因素，如丧偶期间身心健康的变化以及成年子女的代际支持，是否会进一步影响丧偶、休闲活动和认知功能之间的这种关系。
